The Kirkus Prize is one of the richest literary awards in the world, with a prize of $50,000 bestowed annually to authors of fiction, nonfiction and young readers’ literature. It was created to celebrate the 81 years of discerning, thoughtful criticism Kirkus Reviews has contributed to both the publishing industry and readers at large. Books that earned the Kirkus Star with publication dates between November 1, 2014, and October 31, 2015, are automatically nominated for the 2015 Kirkus Prize, and the winners will be selected on October 23, 2015, by an esteemed panel composed of nationally respected writers and highly regarded booksellers, librarians and Kirkus critics.

Erec Stebbins

Genres

Children's & Teen

Fiction & Literature

Science Fiction & Fantasy

Thrillers

Erec Stebbins

I am a biomedical researcher who writes novels in a variety of genres, focusing on thrillers and science fiction. My work has consistently been praised for its action and thrills alongside a deeper, often philosophical angle. Many have remarked that the novels could make incredible films. I have extremely timely and "hot button" global thrillers that struggle with contemporary events such as my thrillers, "The Ragnarök Conspiracy" and "Extraordinary Retribution". I also write science fiction, and my "Daughter of Time" trilogy, currently consisting of the first two books, READER and WRITER, has received enthusiastic praise, comparing the novels to Bradbury and the Hyperion cantos (San Francisco Book Reviews).

An original take on various sci-fi motifs that meditates on themes of love and humanity.

Traversing time and space, Stebbins’ space opera follows the long journey of a singularly gifted Earth girl named Ambra Dawn, who might just be the savior of the entire universe. Even as a young girl among humans, Ambra was different. Odd and strange, she possessed an ability coveted by all alien species: a gift to see the future and the past, the result of a tumor growing in her brain. Unbeknownst to the inhabitants of Earth, an insectlike alien race called the Dram rules from the shadows. Influencing culture and politics, they’re here to guide human evolution toward producing Readers—those, like Ambra, who possess the ability to guide Dramships through the Orbs. With tendrils reaching out, Orbs allow for instantaneous space travel, but what the Orbs truly are is unknown and debated. Ambra’s idyllic life in farm country is destroyed when humans working for the Dram come and take her. In an institution, she’s tested, beaten and experimented on. Horrific surgeries mutilate and blind her, and her skull is removed to give her tumor room to grow. The only escape Ambra has is to travel through time, back into history on her own to learn and experience life. But, since the Dram don’t realize she has surpassed every other Reader in terms of power and ability, Ambra is taken from Earth and sold into slavery. Stebbins does an exceptional job creating unique, detailed alien races, from the dreadful, cruel Dram to the octopuslike Sortax who live in water and the Xix, who rescue Ambra from enslavement. Long, lean, four-armed, intelligent and kind, the Xix work to prevent cruelty against the lesser races. Two Xixians, Waythrel and Thel, are especially strong alien characters who act as guides for Ambra, helping her develop her abilities. Although the first half of the novel suffers from too much telling and too little action, the second half comes alive. Ambra, able to travel through Orbs like no one before, takes on the Dram in a dramatic conflict that leads to her facing the Dram emperor. In order to free the universe of the Dram scourge, Ambra must make a heart-wrenching choice: the universe or Earth. Eventually, the novel takes a slightly odd turn toward metafiction, as Ambra informs the reader that they, too, have a part in saving the Earth.

A richly detailed, compelling story about the power of love.

ADDITIONAL WORKS AVAILABLE:

EXTRAORDINARY RETRIBUTION

Thriller

"STARTLINGLY DARK" -San Francisco/Sacramento Book Reviews
"A LABYRINTH OF HIGHLY CHARGED ACTION" -Tome Tender
Sometimes evil is not born of madness, but madness of evil.
A rogue CIA agent partners with the brother of a slain colleague to uncover a conspiracy deep in the intelligence community. But a shadow follows them: a killer bent on a revenge so terrible, it is only matched by the crimes committed against him. In the end, no one escapes unscathed, no beliefs will go unchallenged, and no wrong will escape the terrible, final, and extraordinary retribution.
"A FAST-PACED INTERNATIONAL THRILLER...THE TWISTS AND TURNS OF PLOT CONTINUE RIGHT UP TO THE LAST EMOTIONALLY-CHARGED PARAGRAPH" -Midwest Book Review
"AN ADDICTIVE PAGE TURNER AND HEART POUNDING THRILL RIDE... AN ABSOLUTE MUST-READ. YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO PUT IT DOWN. -Internet Review of Books

A young boy from the Trail comes to the city. He is an outsider. Ignorant. Alone. Until he finds the Junk Man. Then, what was broken might be made new. In a world too full of waste and brokenness, there is a mythology of redemption. In lives marred by clumsiness in matters of the heart, there can be renewal. Buried in the deepest pits of loss, pain, and tarnished dreams, there is a resurrection.

Once upon a time in the middle of a beautiful garden, there lived a Caterpillar and a Stone, and they were very much in love. A fairy's tale of love, loss, and beauty for not quite grown-ups. Presented as an illustrated, full-color love storybook.

A Western terrorist organization targets Muslims around the world, and FBI agent John Savas is drawn into a web of international intrigue. To solve the case, he must put aside the loss of his son and work with a man who symbolizes all he has come to hate. Both are drawn into a race against time to stop the plot of an American bin Laden and prevent a global catastrophe.

"STEBBINS´S TRILOGY REMAINS BOTH FASCINATING AND UNPREDICTABLE” -ForeWord Reviews
“WARPING THE EXPECTATIONS OF THE GENRE” -San Francisco Book Review
**From hatred, Love. From many, One.***
Book 2 in the Daughter of Time trilogy: A love story and sci-fi epic about the beautiful and terrible destiny of profoundly star-crossed lovers with a galaxy´s fate in their hands.
"ANOTHER EPIC STORY" -Midwest Book Review

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